UK should invest £20bn into UN climate fund by 2030 to pay its 'fair share'

The latest report from the Institution for Public Policy Research (IPPR) says the UK should put £20.0bn into the UN climate fund by 2030 to pay its “fair share”.

The fund aims to tackle the global climate crisis and each country should do its part in combating carbon emissions said the report.

According to the think-tank, the UK had been responsible for the fifth most carbon emissions since the 1750s.

The IPPR urged the next government to invest in the UN Green Climate Fund to help initiatives to tackle the climate crisis.

A failure to prevent runaway climate crisis could result in “an unprecedented threat to international cooperation” and a breakdown of the “international order”, according to the IPPR.

“Whilst nations are turning inwards, the impact of the natural breakdown will be cross border,” the report warned.

For now, the UK plans to contribute just £1.4bn over the next four years although it has not disclosed its budget for the fund beyond 2023.

Laurie Laybourn-Langton, an associate at the thinktank said according to the Guardian: “The UK is a wealthy country with a large past and current contribution to environmental destruction, so should shoulder more of the burden. In an age of environmental breakdown, justice must be hardwired through all international relations.”

G20 nations had been expected to mobilise more than £100.0bn in climate funds for developing nations, but have since quietly scaled back pledges.

The call came ahead of the UN climate talks in Madrid scheduled for early December.